Hampton residents voice opinions on budget

HAMPTON – A majority of residents polled in Hampton believe reducing hours at the city's community centers, libraries and Hampton History Museum are ways to cut costs in the upcoming year.

Conversely, the 1,608 people who participated in the poll said the city needs to continue focusing dollars on repairing pot holes, paying school crossing guards and funding youth prevention services.

The polling was conducted last month. Hampton city staff will use the responses to craft a 2013 fiscal year budget that is expected to offset property tax revenue loses by cutting costs and increasing user-based taxes.

City staff is trying to raise revenue, as it predicts real estate tax collections will drop $4.6 million if the City Council keeps the existing tax rate.

Wednesday morning, the City Council reviewed more than a dozen fees and taxes that can be added, including increases for fees attached to cigarette sales, building permits and fire inspections.

For instance, increasing the city food and beverage tax by 1 percent, to 7.5 percent, would raise about $2.3 million in revenue, Hampton Finance Director Karl Daughtrey said.

"It's an example of a cost that is passed directly onto the consumer," said City Manager Mary Bunting.

The city manager is recommending employees receive 6 percent salary increases, although those people will never see the increase in their take-home pay. That's because the state is forcing employees enrolled in the Virginia Retirement System to pay 5 percent toward their retirement benefits in the upcoming year.

Without increases to their pay, employees would take home fewer dollars. Because salaries are federally taxed, the city would need to raise salaries to a total of 6 percent to level employees' salaries to 2012 levels, Bunting said.

"We will have to put more money into the system to make employees whole," Bunting said. "This is truly a state mandate in this case. It may come with a larger public policy goal, but it does become a burden on the municipalities."

The City Council will ultimately decide if any fees or additional employee benefits are initiated. That decision will take place after Bunting unveils the budget on April 13.

The city's poll results can be found: http://www.hampton.gov/media/media_releases/budget_poll_results.html.

For more city news, read and comment on the Hampton Matters blog at http://www.dailypress.com/hamptonmatters.